thehunter on 09 June 2025
Lincoln suspended habeas corpus twice during the Civil War, under the debated meaning of the Suspension Clause.
Also, the courts have been mixed as to what protections non-US persons have:
On the one hand, Yamataya v. Fisher (1903) extended protections to non-citizens including criminal aliens.
On the other, the US border service was able to proceed under the Patriot Act to seize phones, computers and other papers of foreign persons upon entry into the US. This power is not allowed for US persons under the Fourth Amendment.
Given all that, I'd be careful claiming that somehow Donald Trump is acting out of turn given what his predecessors (going back 31 presidents...) have done. Just ask those Americans that Obama drone-deleted!
